Late Bloomer?

[razorback]

I recently acquired a stunning Okeetee Juvi, and am under the impression that it is 1yr & 2 mo's old. However, it is approx. 18 inches long and about as big around as a tube of chap stick, if not a smidgen thinner. Does this seem like garden variety growth...or is my little guy a late bloomer? I have read in Love's book that at two years they are fairly mature, but at this rate I'm going to have to hold "Bono" (his name) back.

 

[Baba-Lou]

Wow my snake is is roughly that size and he's a few months old.

 

[hediki]

whats his diet? diet is a big factor in how fast amd much snakes grow. i cant tell you what exactly to feed him since i have now hands on experience but i know some one else will.

 

[razorback]

Well, I just picked him up. I am going to spit ball and say he was well fed, as he is healthy, alert, even gregarious. I plan on feeding every 4-5 days, one to two proprerly sized f/t mice, at least until he gets some heft to him.

 

[hediki]

Well, I just picked him up. I am going to spit ball and say he was well fed, as he is healthy, alert, even gregarious. I plan on feeding every 4-5 days, one to two proprerly sized f/t mice, at least until he gets some heft to him.

wat size mice were you feeding before?

 

[razorback]

:shrugs:

I only acquired him recently, he has fed three times with me so far, and is eating small f/t pinkies. I don't know what he was fed in the first 1yr and 2 mo's prior to my adoption of him. I suppose he was adequately fed, as he is healthy.

 

[Virago]

I guess it all depends....

Every snake will have a different growth rate. I feed my 18mth old 2 adult mice every 7 days. She's about as fat as a big magic marker. also I picked up 2 2005's a few days ago and one of them is as fat or fatter than chapstick but her brother is smaller than a pencil. And their from the same clutch. If its eating then thats what matters.

 

[razorback]

Good call. I was just curious if I should be concerned about the size. I'm not worried about the health or eating habits of the snake...so life goes on.

Thanks.....

 

[zwyatt]

Thought I'd add...

...that I wouldn't necessarily be worried. My first ever snake last April was a yearling (almost exactly one year) from Kathy Love. I was told in advance that she had been a slow starter. In the beginning she was a very sporadic eater. As a result, at 1 year of age, she was 17" and no wider than a tube of chap stick like you described.
She's eaten like a beast for me since day one and is about one feeding away from moving from hoppers to the next size up. So she's still behind what a lot of snakes her age are size-wise, but I imagine that she has made up for lost time and caught up to a lot of others that are the same age.

 

[TandJ]

Not to shock anyone, but I have a hatchling from June that weighs 8 or 9g's, then I have some other from the same breeder that are a month younger that are at 30g's respectivily. Some animals grow quickly and some drag their heels growing. Although my little one that is 8g's came from an immature mother, and was also a non feeder for two months when I recieved her, I have been working with her and she has slowly but surely put a little size on. The parentage on the little was a normal corn ( unknown het's ) and creamsicle, so I would have thought growth might have been quicker.

Regards..